Engine-counter



(No Model.)

F. W. CHILD.

ENGINE COUNTER.

Patented Oct WITH/8858:

ATTORNEYS.

u PETsns. Pm a L Aol' Greenwich, in the county of Fairield and UNITED STATES PATENT OFI-ICED FREDERICK IV. CHILD, OF GREENVICH, CONNECTICUT.

ENGINE-COUNTER.

PZCIICATION forming part cf Letters Patent No. 351,164, dated October 19, 1886.

Application filed December 7, 1835.

.To @ZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, FREDERICK XV. CHILD,

State oI'Conuecticut,haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements ,in Engine-Counters, of which the Afollowing is a specification.

This invention relates to an improved deyiee for counting the rotations ot' the driving shafts or strokes ot' engines, pumps, and other A machinery in a reliable and effective manner and the invention consists of the combination oi' a train ot' registering gear-wheels, a primary spur-wheel, an oscillating escapement operated by the engine or machine, and a spring by which said spur-wheel is intermittingly moved, said spring being automatically wound up by a pawl-and-ratchet device operated by a lever connected to the oscillating escapement directly or by the engine or machine.

In the accompanying drawings,Figure l represents a front elevation oi' my improved counter connected to a steam-engine; and Figs. 2 and 3 are respectively a side elevation and a l'ront elevation, with parts removed, et' the counter, drawn on a larger scale.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts.

Referring to the drawings, A represents an intermeshing train ol' gear-wheels and transmitting-pinions, the shafts of which are provided with pointers that move along face-dials, as customary in counting-registers for steamengine pumps and other machinery. Motion is imparted. to the train ot' registering-wheels A by a primary spur-wheel, B, to the shaftlB ol.' which is keyed a pinion, b, which meshes with the iirst gear-wheel of the train of gearwheels A. A second pinion, d, is keyed to the shaft B ot' the spur-wheel B in I'ront of the same, said gear-wheel meshing with a barrel or drum, C, having a circumferential gearwheel, d. ln the barrel C is arranged a coiled spring, D, which is attached at its outer end to the barrel and at its inner end to the shaft C of the barrel C, which shaft turns in bearings o'l the casing A ot' the counter, as shown in Fig. 2. A ratchet-wheel, c, is keyed tothe shat't C ot' the spring-barrel and engaged bya spring-pawl, e, and eheek-pawl 6"', the pawl e being pivoted to an oscillating rod, E, that is hung by an eye or sleeve to the shaft C ot' the Serial No. 134,968. (X0 model.)

spring-barrel, and connected by a link, E, with the lever-arm F ot an escapement, F, that is lulerumed to the casing A ot' the counter below the spur-wheel B in such a relative position to the spur-wheel B that the teeth ot' the escapement F engage alternately the teeth ol' the spur-wheel B. The lower end of the leverarm F of the escapement F is connected in any suitable manner to the piston-rod, crank-shaft, or other rotary or reciprocating part, the rotations or strokes of which have to be counted.

The oscillating red E, instead of being connected to the lever-arm F', may be directly connected like the lever-arm F with the pistonrod, crank-shaft, or other actuating part.

At each oscillation ofthe escapement the spurwheel B, which is impelled by the action ofthe coiI-sprin g D, and the gear-wheel d and pinion d,move forward I'or the distance of one tooth,so that the regular and reliable action 0I' the spurwheel B is obtained, whether the oscillations imparted to the escapement by the strokes of the engine or other machine are longer or shorter. No skipping of one of the teeth of the spur-wheels by longer strokes is possible,

as the spring moves the spur-wheel at the mo- Y,

ment when itis released by the escapement. By the lever-connection oi' the escapement F or moving part of the engine or other machine with the pawl-and-ratehet mechanism of the spring-barrel the spring ot the same is automatically wound up again at every second stroke, so that the same is always in a condition to move the spur-wheel B and keep it in engagement with the teeth ot' the escapement.

The oscillating lever-rod E is made thin enough to be flexible, so that in case the spring is wound up to its full extent the rod E will give77 sufficiently to the motion ot' the escapement-lever without breaking the spring, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 5%. This is an essential point, asotherwise the spring D, ratchet-wheel c, or transmitting gear-wheels d di' would be liable to be broken and the regular operation ofthe counter jeopardized. By aetuating the train of registering-wheels by a spurwheel and escapement oscillated by the engine or machine and iinpelling the spur-wheel by a spring which wound up at every second stroke of the engine or other machine, a counting-register is obtained that requires no setting IOO or winding up by the attendant, and that performs its Work in a reliable and accurate manner Without being liable to get out of order or fail to record thestrok es, whatever be the length ofthe same. f

Having thus described lny invention, I Claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent-v 1. The combination, with the piston-rod of an engine, of a train of registering gear-Wheels, a primary spur-wheel, an oscillating escapenient actuated by said piston-rod, the strokes of which are to be counted, a spiral spring inlpelling said spur-wheel,'and means, substan- 4 tially as described, whereby said spring is automatically wound up by the eseapement or directly by the engine or machine, substan- V tially as set forth.

2. The combination, with the piston-rod of In testimony that I claim the foregoing as 3o my invention I have signed my name in presence of two subscribing Witnesses. y

, l FREDERICK NV. CHILD. Witnesses: s

PAUL GOEPEL, MARTIN PETRY. 

